Xbox One X games will have bigger downloads for 4K, but regular Xbox One owners don't need to worry

Xbox One X is a truly 4K console, according to Microsoft, and 4K assets take up a lot of space. But the company is also striving to keep the same games compatible on both Xbox One X and the non-4K original Xbox One. Does that mean players with less-beefy consoles will have to give up extra hard drive space (Forza Motorsport 7 has a whopping 100GB estimated install size) for assets they won't even be able to use? Nope!

“With the launch of Xbox One X, when it comes to game content our intention is to download the correct assets to the correct console,” a Microsoft representative told gaming news site Stevivor. “This means, regardless of the TV you are playing on, 4K assets will be downloaded to Xbox One X (if available) and the standard 1080p assets will be downloaded to an Xbox One S.”

Ahead of launching Xbox One X, Microsoft says it's working to give developers more flexibility to determine what parts of each game go where for end users. That extends beyond just graphical stuff.

“In addition to 4K specific assets, developers have options when it comes to language specific assets as well, which depending on the title, can drastically reduce the install footprint. This ability to intelligently install the best assets for each console and language are available on all Xbox One devices, and it will be up to the developer of the game to determine the specific implementation.”